Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has announced plans to travel to Washington on August 18 for talks with United States President, Donald Trump, focusing on strategies to bring an end to the ongoing war in Ukraine.
The Ukrainian leader revealed the trip in a statement shared on Telegram on August 16, following what he described as a “lengthy, substantive conversation” with Trump.
According to Zelenskyy, the discussion also included updates on Trump’s August 15 summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska.
Zelenskyy said he first held a private conversation with Trump before European leaders were added to the call.
“I intend to discuss all details regarding ending the killings, ending the war, with President Trump in Washington on Monday. I am grateful for the invitation,” he stated.
He voiced his backing for Trump’s idea of a trilateral summit between Ukraine, the United States, and Russia, noting it could serve as a platform for top-level dialogue.
At the same time, he stressed the need for European partners to be “involved at every stage” alongside Washington to guarantee Ukraine’s security.
The Trump-Putin meeting in Alaska, which lasted nearly three hours, ended without a ceasefire agreement.
During a short press appearance, neither leader took questions. Trump admitted that while his team had made “great progress,” a deal was still elusive, adding, “we haven’t quite got there.” Standing at Joint Base Elmendorf near Anchorage, Trump told reporters, “There’s no deal until there’s a deal.”
Putin gave few details about the outcome, and critics noted that Ukraine was not directly included in the talks. Trump later said he would brief Zelenskyy as well as NATO and European allies on the results of the summit.
Even as diplomacy played out, Russia intensified strikes across Ukraine. Kyiv reported Moscow launched 85 Shahed-type drones and an Iskander-M ballistic missile overnight, most of which were intercepted.
However, 12 drones hit targets in Sumy, Chernihiv, Donetsk, and Dnipropetrovsk regions. In the latter, an attack on a residential neighborhood killed one civilian and injured another.
Meanwhile, Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed it had downed 29 Ukrainian drones across six regions, with local officials saying the Azot chemical plant in Nevinnomyssk, an important producer of components for explosives—was the main target.